


Green Eggs and Ham

by swampthot



Category: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Genre: Illiteracy, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-25
Updated: 2018-05-25
Packaged: 2019-05-13 13:00:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 882
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14749347
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swampthot/pseuds/swampthot
Summary: Mac teaching Charlie how to read.





	Green Eggs and Ham

“Okay, dude!” Mac says cheerfully, flopping down next to Charlie on his shitty couch. “I got the books and I got some glue for you to huff. After. If you do good.”

When Charlie had asked Mac, hesitantly, if he would teach him how to read, he really hadn’t expected him to say yes so much as make fun of him, and now he doesn’t really know what to say. Or how to begin. Or how Mac is going to have the patience to teach him.

And he feels self-conscious. And he feels embarrassed.

“Hey, Charlie.” Charlie looks up from his hands and at Mac. Mac takes a seat on the couch next to Charlie. “It’s okay, dude. I wanna help you.” He’s still kinda got that goofy grin on his face, and it makes Charlie melt a little bit. Mac is always so genuine.

“I just kinda feel like a little kid, y’know?” Charlie says it haltingly, like he’s afraid Mac will agree with the sentiment.

“I know you’re not a little kid, dude. S’not your fault no one taught you when you were younger. Stuff like that happens.”

Charlie is pretty sure a grown ass man not knowing how to read is a pretty bizarre occurrence, but he doesn’t say anything, grateful for Mac’s blind support. “Okay.”

Mac digs into the bag, and pulls out- Okay, Charlie can’t read, but he does know enough to recognize Green Eggs and Ham when he sees it. “Dude. Are you kidding me?”

“I know, Charlie,” Mac says gently, “But it’s gonna help you to practice something easier, okay?”

Charlie nods.

“So.” Mac flips the book open. “You know your letters, right?”

“Yeah,” Charlie says. He kind of does. He knows the curvy one his name starts with and a few others.

Mac simply raises an eyebrow. “Right. So I’m just gonna kind of teach you how to put ‘em together, okay?”

“Okay.”

Mac points to a word. “So that’s an S. It makes a hiss sound.”

“I know that, dickhead.”

“Dude, do you want me to teach you or not?”

“I do, man, just don’t be paternal with me.”

“Patronizing?”

“Oh, my God.” Charlie gets up to leave and Mac grabs his wrist.

“Charlie.”

Charlie sucks in a breath. “Yeah?”

“I’m sorry, dude,” Mac says sincerely, looking into his eyes. “Let’s try again, okay?”

Charlie sits, pulling away from Mac’s grip, even though the feel of Mac’s hand circling his wrist is all he can think about. He looks earnestly at the page.

“Sad? That word says sad, right?”

“Nah, dude,” Mac contradicts him. “The last letter. It’s an M.”

“S-” Charlie squints just a little. “Same.”

“Sam,” Mac corrects quietly.

“Sam.” Charlie frowns. “Wait, that’s not the first word on the page, dude.”

“Yeah,” Mac says. “I thought you knew the first two.”

Charlie rolls his eyes a little, ironically, at Mac’s stupidity. “Okay.” He looks at the next word, then recognizes it. “Sam. El-”

“That’s an I, Charlie,” Mac says patiently. Mac’s hand bumps against his finger on the page, and he leaves it there. Charlie swallows.

“Sam. I. Am,” Charlie finishes a little more triumphantly. He flips over a page, then another. Mac doesn’t object to the skip. He stares at the first letter he sees a little confusedly.

“B-”

“D, Charlie,” Mac says, then stops. “Wait. Hang on. I have an idea.”

Charlie stares at him confusedly as he takes Charlie’s chin in his hands, tilting it towards his face. “Look at the different shape my mouth makes when I make the ‘D’ sound.”

Either he’s treating him like a complete dumbass, Charlie reasons, which he would never do, or he’s trying to accomplish something entirely different. He realizes their hands are still resting together, almost on top of each other, on the book, and his heart begins to beat more rapidly.

Mac studies him carefully, and says, “To make the sound, you have to put your tongue up to your teeth.”

All the times he’s sat shoulder to shoulder with Mac before, all the times he’s looked at him from such a slight distance as this, he’s never quite felt as nervous.

Mac’s other hand is still holding his chin gently in place.

“Do,” Charlie whispers, glancing down at the page without moving his face. Mac smiles a little.

“Good job, Charlie,” he says softly, still staring at his mouth. Then he leans in, and Charlie moves back slightly, startled. Mac closes his eyes with remorse.

“Charlie, I’m.” Mac exhales, leaning back, and the tone of his voice suddenly makes something click into place for Charlie. “I’m sor-”

Charlie interrupts him with a kiss. Mac briefly makes a noise of surprise low in his throat, but kisses back tenderly, softly, still holding Charlie’s face like it’s something to be treasured, like it’s something that could disappear at any moment.

Finally Charlie breaks away, their foreheads still resting together, and Charlie turns back toward the book, cuddling into Mac’s side. “I wanna keep trying.”

“Yeah, Charlie,” Mac says warmly, rubbing his thumb slowly over Charlie’s shoulder.

For the rest of the afternoon, they stay right there, lost in their own private world, same as usual, but this time when Charlie pronounces everything right, Mac rewards him with a kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> this was kinda ehhhh n if you have suggestions as always criticism is appreciated thx for reading


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